William a



(N0 Mddel.)

W. A. BALDWIN. CONVERTER. No. 484,770.

Patented 0m. 25, 1892.

' UNITED ST TES PATENT FFICE.

IVILLIAM A. BALDWIN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TU ROSWELL D. SAVVYER, OF SAME PLACE.

CONVERTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No; 484,770, dated October 25, 1892.

Application filed October 10, 1891. Serial No. 408,283. (No model.)

T or whom it may concern.- ods in that the current or currents are intro- Be itknown thatI, WILLIAM A. BALDWIN, a duced from opposite sides of the vessel and citizen of the United States, residing at New projected upon the mass at or beneath the York, in the county of New York and-State of upper and lower surfaces, respectively, and 5 New York,haveinvented certain new and useat different angles, so as to impart a horiful Improvements in Converter-Furnaces; and zontal and gyratory motion to the molten mass V Ido declare the following to bcafull, clear, and and to bring every particle of the same to the exact description of theinvention,such as will action of the air-currents as they are introenable others skilled in the art to which it apduced at the tuyeres. IO pertains to make and use the same. In order to enable those skilled in the art This invention relates to an improved methto which my invention appertains to practice 0d of and apparatus for decarbonizing iron the same, I have illustrated by Figure 1 in and liberating the impurities contained therethe accompanying drawings a vertical cenin for the purpose of rendering such iron ina tral sectional View of a converter such as 15 condition to be recarbonized by fluxing thereusually employed with my improved means with a suitable rccarbonizing agent-such as of projecting the blast or currents; and in Fig. spiegeleisen-so as to convert the same into 2 I have illustrated a cross-sectional view of malleable or wrought iron or into steel. the same, taken in the plane indicated by the Heretofore atmospheric air has been introdotted line X X on Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross- 2o duced into the molten mass in the form of a sectional view of a modification.

powerful blast by the use of heavy and ex- Referring by letter to said drawings, A inpensive machinery, so as to force the particles dicates a receptacle for the molten mass, comof the metal apart and present the same to monly known as the converter. This conthe action of the oxidizing agent, while the verter is lined with refractory materialto en- 25 silicon, carbon, and other combustible eleable it to withstand the heat of the metal,

ments are intended to be brought into that and may be of an ordinary or approved conintimate contact with the oxidizing agent struction. This vessel or converter, which is which is essential to insure a complete and designed to receive the molten iron from the uniform combustion by producing both at cupola or any known melting-furnace, is pro- 8;: 30 the surface and in the body of the metal viovided in one of its lower sides with a suitable lent air-currents, which increase the agitanumber of tuyere-holes a, there being three tion of the mass so that the eliminated imshown in the present illustration, although I purities are mixed and forced by the currents may employ more or less. These tuyere-holes, so as to be returned repeatedly to the month which are provided with tuyere-tubes b of 3 5 of the tuyeres and there exposed to the action suitable material, are arranged in an upof the blast and driven back into the body of wardly oblique or inclined position, so that the metal. the currents introduced through the same will Heretofore the blast has been introduced act upon the upper side or slightly below the into the vessel upward vertically through the surface of the molten mass in an angular o 40 mass of molten iron. The blast has also been manner. On the opposite side of the vessel introduced horizontallyinto the mass and has or converter I provide similar tuyere-holes been introduced at an angle, so as to be disand tuyeres; but instead of incliningthem upcharged violently upon the surface of the wardly I incline them downwardly or in an Inass- It has been introduced tangentially opposite direction and have them enter the 45 into the mass or bath, and it has been iutrointerior of the vessel at aless altitude. These duced at an angle upon the surface of the tuyere-tubes c are designed to direct the blast mass and the angle of the tuyere or inlet into the body of the mass and slightly above adapted to be changed, so as to vary the places the bottom, so that the blast is simultaneously of contact and project the currents uniformly introduced in the mass in opposite directions too 5 over the surface of the bath. and at different angles upon or slightly be- My inventiondiffers from allot these methlow the upper and lower surfaces, respectively, so as to produce a thorough agitation of the particles of the metal and the impurities therein and liberate the latter.

B indicates the wind box or pipe, which leads from the blast-operating mechanism and has its inlet controlled by a suitable valve (1. This Wind-pipe may be of a spiral form, although I have illustrated the same as a broken spiral having its ends securelycapped, as by such construction I am enabled to get better results by more etfectively utilizing the force of the blast. This air-pipe may be connected with the outer ends of the tuyeretubes in the usual manner.

In the illustration of my apparatus I have shown the tuyere-tub'es on one side of the vessel arranged upon an angle of about twenty degrees, While those on the opposite side are arranged at an angle of about forty degrees, although I do not wish to confine myself to such angles as shown, as they may be varied, if desired.

In operation when the molten metal has been placed in a vessel and the air-blast turned on the air-currents will take the courses indicated by the arrows, so as to impart awhirling or gyratory motion to the mass and thoroughly agitate every particle of the metal and rapidly eliminate all of the impurities.

In the modification illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings I have shown the tuyere-tubes slightly deflected from diametrical points in opposite directions, so that the currents will be directed upwardly on one side of the mass and downwardly on the other side and also at a slight angle to the right and left, respectively, thus giving to the molten mass a double action.

Having described my invention, what I claim is- 1. The method described of converting crude iron into malleable iron or steel, consisting in violently agitating or imparting a gyratory motion to the molten mass by simultaneously projecting air-currents upon the molten mass from one side of the vessel upwardly at an angle thereto and from the opposite side of the vessel into the mass and downwardly at an angle, substantially as specified.

2. The combination, with a suitable vessel adapted to hold molten metal, having tuyeres entering the interior from one side and upwardl y at an angle and tuyeres entering from the opposite side downwardly at an angle, of a suitable air box or pipe connected with the tuyeres, substantially as specified.

3. The combination, with a suitable vessel adapt-ed to hold molten iron,of tuyeres entering the vessel from one side and arranged upwardly at an angle, tuyeres entering the opposite side of the vessel and arranged downwardly at an angle, and theair-pipe of a spiral form connected with the tnyeres,substantially as specified.

4. The combination, with a converter-vessel, of tuyeres in opposite sides thereof, said tuyeres entering the opposite sides at diEer- 

